50 Greatest Soap Actors: #3 Larry Bryggman

NAME: Larry BryggmanRANK: 3SOAP ROLES: John Dixon, AS THE WORLD TURNS (1969-2004); LOVE IS A MANY SPLENDORED THING; Cast on GUIDING LIGHT as a Bauer in 1962 but was drafted into the Army before starting the role

AWARDS:
2005 Winner of Equity's Richard Seff Award
2005 Obie Award win for Lead Actor "Romance"
2005 Lucille Lortel Award nomination Outstanding Lead Actor ("Romance")
2005 Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Featured Actor ("Romance")
2005 Outer Critics Circle Award nomination for Featured Actor ("Romance")
2001 Tony Award nomination for Featured Actor ("Proof")
1994 Tony Award nomination for Featured Actor ("Picnic")
1991 Obie Award win for Sustained Excellence of Performance Off-Broadway
1991 Soap Opera Digest Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor: Daytime
1989 Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
1989 Soap Opera Digest Award nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role: Daytime
1988 Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
1988 Soap Opera Digest Award nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role: Daytime
1987 Daytime Emmy win for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
1986 Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
1986 Soap Opera Digest Award nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role on a Daytime Serial
1986 Soap Opera Digest Award nomination for Outstanding Contribution by an Actor/Actress to the Form of Continuing Drama who is currently on a Daytime Serial
1986 Soap Opera Digest Award nomination for Outstanding Villain on a Daytime Serial
1985 Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
1984 Daytime Emmy win for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series
1982 Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series
1981 Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series
1977 Fifth Annual Afternoon TV Writers & Editors Award - Best Actor
1975 Third Annual Afternoon TV Writers & Editors Award - Best Actor

COMMENTS FROM THE PANEL:Jonathan Reiner: A classically trained thesp equally at home with comedy, suspense and melodrama, I would pay to watch him read the health care bill!

Roger Newcomb: My first memory of AS THE WORLD TURNS was John kidnapping baby Andy. Larry Bryggman has provided so many wonderful memories over the years ever since as the complex Dr. Dixon. Can ATWT really end without one more Bob and John scene (perhaps Bob and John watching Chris and Reid and thinking how familiar their relationship seems)? Or without Lucinda's final scene being in a hot tub with John? I sure hope not. Stage, television or film, it doesn't matter with Bryggman. His effortless performances will never be forgotten.

Nelson Aspen: One of the daytime greats, if only for the simplicity he seemed to bring to the most complex and convoluted storylines. You could accept almost anything from John Dixon if only because of the credibility and commitment Larry brought to every scene.

Alan Carter: Even through boring storylines, Larry Bryggman could not be boring. One of those trained stage actors, he always seemed to be at home on daytime....elevating all the actors in a scene around him.

Patrick Erwin: It’s Johnny D! Bryggman’s craft and professionalism drove his character, and ATWT, for decades. I believed every word Bryggman ever uttered, and bought every pairing he was part of, especially his glorious pairing with Elizabeth Hubbard (Lucinda).

Connie Passalacqua Hayman (Marlena De Lacroix): Did you ever believe Bryggman was acting for one second of all the years he played nasty John Dixon on AS THE WORLD TURNS? He just was John Dixon! That's the sign of consumate skill as an actor. He does two plays a year on Broadway, so don't miss Bryggman in whatever he's in if you visit New York City.

Lynn Liccardo: John Dixon was the guy my mother absolutely loved to hate. I only wished she had lived long enough to watch Larry Bryggman sitting in that rocking chair in the nursery, saying goodbye to his and Barbara’s baby.

COMMENTS FROM CO-STARS/CO-WORKERS/INDUSTRY:Martha Byrne: (worked with Bryggman on AS THE WORLD TURNS) Saying that Larry Bryggman is a great actor doesn't even touch the enormity of his talent. I've had the pleasure of working with him on AS THE WORLD TURNS and his passion for the work was inspirational. Watching him work with Elizabeth Hubbard was like watching the greatest magician performing their greatest feat. You have no idea how they did it, but it left you speechless.

Larry was the best on ATWT!! His portrayal of Dr. John Dixon so drew my attention on that show. I watched as a child in the 70s and he was so good at being bad. For years, I watched just because of John Dixon and Lucinda Walsh. ATWT was never the same without him. Thanks for giving him his recognition.

IMO Larry Bryggman is easily one of the supreme acting talents to ever grace daytime television. For my money he's THE VERY BEST MALE ACTOR IN THE ENTIRE HISTORY OF SOAPS!! I knew he wasn't going to make number one...he didn't have the luck at being a dual role like marvelous David Canary and unlike Anthony Geary who sometimes like to play it flashy, Bryggman was a grand master at the art subtlety. I mean Bryggman could do more with a rise eyebrow then most actors can do with 50 pages of dialogue.

He may not have made number one but I'm thrilled he's in the top three! Well deserved!! BRAVA!!

I am still nervous that David Canary won't be #1, but the odds are getting better! I would have put Bryggman at #2, but glad he is ranked so high. Even though I didn't really get into ATWT until I was in high school in the 80s, my mom always watched ATWT when I was growing up, and I still remember "John Dixon" scenes even though at the time I HATED soap operas! Bryggman is truly a master.

3 years ago, Larry Bryggman was a wonderful Gloucester opposite Kevin Kline's King Lear at the Joseph Papp Public Theatre. His stage acting is just as powerful & strong as his TV performances. Next time Larry is in a play in NYC, race to get a ticket to see him! :)

In the early 70's before VCR's, my grandmother would make audio cassette tape recordings of all the John Dixon scenes for me so that I could listen to them after school. I still have some of them. Years later, when I played them back, I was completely mesmerized. He's THAT good!

The beauty of the top five (presuming Canary and Geary are the two remaining actors) is that they could be listed in pretty much any order, and I couldn't argue with any configuration. A five-way tie of pure excellence.